Shanghai Min 小南國 @ Tsim Sha Tsui Centre, Hong Kong

Thinking of sharing some tasty & memorable Shanghai cuisine with all of you, we’ve decided that we should cut the queue of our HK-MACAU TRIP posts.
Fast forwarded to our Day 4 dinner, our cousins from Hong Kong brought us to one of their favourite restaurants.

Shanghai Min 小南國

or Xiao Nan Guo

Xiao Nian Guo 小南國 offers a spread of Shanghai classics. Being quite a giant with chains of restaurants around Shanghai, Ningbo, Beijing, Tianjon and also Hong Kong, they accumulated an empire. Though with many branches, this Shanghainese restaurant have bagged with praises despite living in cities inhabited by many restaurants with similar menus.
There we were, having a late dinner at their Tsim Tsa Tsui branch. The modern and classy interior made the whole dining session a comfortable and posh one. Not forgetting the quick services from the local staffs (yeah.. everyone works fast here). Speaking of Shanghai cuisine, the first that would tend to cross your mind would be the Shanghai Xiao Long Bao, I’m pretty sure…
However, at Xiao Nian Guo, the lip-smacking dish that draws in locals would be the stellar red-cooked pork (hong shao rou 红烧肉) or the Grandma’s meat pot. We were convinced! I love the Shanghai palate!

Note: Names in asterisk (*) are based on our owns descriptions as we’ve overlooked the dishes’ names.

Let’s start off with some cold dishes:

Drunken Chicken in Shaoxing Wine
Though served cold, you’ll be warmed up by this dish. Chinese wine pairing with smooth chicken was a perfect combination as you’ll get to taste the aromatic rice wine being infused well into the smooth meat.

*Spinach with Chopped Salmon
A petite dish for everyone to nibble on, this is definitely something new

Nan Guo Chicken Soup 特色本鸡汤
Not just an ordinary Chicken soup, it’s loaded with essence and other ingredients like fish maws, mushrooms being double boiled. A bowl of goodness! 🙂

*Long Melons in Clear Broth
Cooked in clear broth with some wood ear fungus, it gave sweet and fresh flavours

Grandma’s meat pot 外婆红烧肉
Not to boast too much as I’ve did earlier, but the meat was just so tender with equal proportions of fat and lean meat, the gravy was at the right level of thickness with hints of sweetness embedded

Crispy Duck Wrap 上海香酥鸭
Another appetizing dish worth ordering. The duck meat was wrapped under a layer of crispy skin itself and you may want to wrapped it up again with the sauce and other ingredients provided. However, eating on its own is just as good 🙂

*Sweet & Sour Fish
A rather cute preparation and presentation of the fish as the meat were sliced and deep fried retaining the ‘blossomed’ shape. Very well presented.

Xiao Long Bao 小笼包
Here comes the Shanghai Dumplings enjoyed by most patrons. Though the broth and meat was paired perfectly, however I find the dumpling skin a little thick to my liking. Still not a kick-ass dish as the pot of juicy pork.

Rice Dumpling In Sweet Lotus Soup 藕粉珍珠圆子
Glutinous Rice Balls in a sweet serving, i love this dessert as they added in some Osmanthus or Kwai Fa (桂花), resulting a more bursting flowery flavour to it. A famous Shanghai dessert that everyone should try 🙂